The Northern BC Winter Games are the longest-running annual Games in the province.  First held in 1975, the Northern BC Winter Games began when Jack Philpot and Ken Davies decided to offer the youth of northern BC an opportunity to partake in a grand celebration of sports competition and fellowship. They wanted to help break the monotony of a long cold winter by encouraging kids to join in the heat of athletic competition. 

The first Games were then organized and held in Fort St. John in 1975. The main objective was to encourage a grass roots sports program, involving the greatest number of people. 

Staging events as a Games is a test of the strength and endurance of any community.  So, Ken Davies presented the idea of having the Games rotated throughout communities in the north with a new "Host" each year - thereby avoiding over-taxing the resources of any one community and ensuring that the best forum for the Games would be available every year. 

With the acceptance of the idea, a new phase of the tradition began and the benefits were twofold.  First, the practice has led to the development of sporting facilities as well as officiating and coaching expertise in many northern cities and towns, which may not have otherwise evolved. Second, the Games have provided an annual social and cultural exchange which is unique to northern BC. 

The task of finding each new Host community resides with the Northern B.C. Winter Games Society.  Every two years the Society invites communities to submit bids to host the Games and chooses a new host from the bids they receive. 

Since their inception, the Games have been held in numerous locations including Fort St. John and Dawson Creek in the east, Williams Lake in the south, Prince Rupert in the west and Fort Nelson in the north.  Click here for a list of past and future Games Host Communities.

In November of 1994, the Minister Responsible for Sport announced an alliance of BC's five multi-sport Games.  It was at that time, the Northern BC Winter Games joined the "BC Family of Games" umbrella, which includes the BC Disability Games, the BC Seniors Games, the BC Summer Games, and the BC Winter Games. By forming this partnership with the BC Games Society, the Northern BC Winter Games Society and its Host Community volunteers can draw on lengthy event management history, providing such services as administrative support, Games marketing, volunteer management, and financial administration.

Over the years the Games have evolved into a sports and cultural event for all ages and levels of ability. Today the Games include traditional sports of skiing and hockey as well as sports not generally exactly considered "athletic" like chess and bridge.